The Sir James Whitney School for the Deaf provides services from birth to adulthood for deaf students who live in Eastern and Northern Ontario.

The site of this Regional Centre is a park-like campus  located on Dundas Street West (Hwy 2) in Belleville. The school has academic and technical programs for Elementary and Secondary level students, student residences, as well as a Resource Centre that includes audiological, psychological and other support services. Students have access to a gymnasium, exercise room, a regulation track, soccer field, baseball diamond and pool. Support facilities include a dining room, kitchen, heating plant and maintenance buildings.

The School is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Education, and no fees are requested from the parents. However, parents are expected to provide adequate clothing and financial support for their child(ren) attending school.

Students living within a 70-kilometre radius of the school are expected to be day students who commute to school from home every day. Students living at greater distances in Southern Ontario and in the north stay in residences here and go home every weekend.

As a separate program reporting to the Superintendent, Residential Services is responsible for the daily operation of the residence programs from the Elementary level through the Secondary level, as well as Student Health Services. Residence programs offer a wide variety of diversified programming, services, education, and activities for students in residence.

The objective of the residence program is to provide a child-centred, safe, home-like atmosphere, conducive to acquiring or improving new skills and knowledge, while offering independence, responsibility, and a positive social setting.

The Sir James Whitney School for the Deaf has been known and identified as "the Mother of Deaf Culture in Ontario" for many years, and the residence program is one area where the students develop an appreciation and understanding of this unique opportunity. The life-long friends they have in residence and the interactions they have with other organizations give the students valuable skills and experiences.

The residence program has well-developed Provincial Standards of care, which cover all areas associated with residential life. In order to promote the safety and welfare of the students in residence programs, there must be safeguards in place. The students themselves need to be able to recognize unacceptable behaviour and treatment. The students, parents, and staff need to know about complaint procedures and appropriate procedures for reporting mistreatment and abuse. The parents, students, and staff need to know and feel confident that complaints will be appropriately addressed. Staff training and development ensure that staff have the skills and knowledge to meet the needs of the students. Accountability processes are in place to monitor whether the students' care and needs are being met, as laid out in their Individual Program Plans. The parents are encouraged to be involved in the development and review of the students' plans.

Although the school has a wide variety of activities and sport leagues offered by the residence programs, students are encouraged to become involved in activities in the community as well. The individual's needs and interests are paramount, and they sometimes can be better met in the community.

The residence programs are staffed 24 hours a day. This provides the students with individual counselling, resources for personal interests, activity and program involvement, and a safe environment. Staff training and development remains a high priority and is provided with a wide range of ongoing training that supports the safety and welfare of the students. This includes First Aid/CPR; non-violent physical crisis intervention; conflict resolution; child abuse reporting; ASL competency, and other training.

Each staff member has a responsibility to be the Primary Counsellor for a group of students. They develop an Individual Program Plan in conjunction with each student and his or her parents. The Primary Counsellor is expected to contact the parents as often as needed to keep them informed about their child(ren). During these conversations with the parents, their child(ren) are discussed, and valuable information can be exchanged for the purpose of students' development in the areas of personal, intellectual, emotional, and social needs.

The Residence Program advocates an open communication policy with the parents through phone calls, e-mail, letters, communication books, and visits to the school and home. The parents are always welcome to make contact with their child(ren) and the staff at the residences. To make the residences more comfortable and the environment as home-like as possible, students are encouraged to bring to their residences articles that relate to home (i.e. family pictures, favourite toys or stuffed animals, bedspread or comforter [single size], posters, etc.).

The residence program is a valuable asset in the students' growth. With the parents and staff working as a team, the students will derive the best of care and attention to meet their individual needs.